Chicken Salad Chick has appointed Drew Travis as chief financial officer, the third C-suite addition the Atlanta-based fast-casual chain has made in 2026 as it accelerates a national franchise buildout that now spans more than 340 locations across 25 states.
Travis steps in with more than 18 years of finance experience and over a decade specifically in restaurant industry roles. He most recently served as Senior Vice President of Finance at GoTo Foods — the multi-brand franchising group formerly known as Focus Brands and the parent behind Cinnabon and Moe's Southwest Grill — where he spent nearly six years in progressively senior roles. Earlier stops include Bloomin' Brands, GrubHub, Discover Financial Services, and Levi Strauss & Co., giving him a cross-sector view of P&L management, FP&A, and data analytics that franchise-heavy concepts increasingly prize at the CFO level.
Leadership Bench Builds
The hire rounds out a leadership team that CEO and president Scott Deviney has been assembling throughout the year. Jill Thomas joined as Chief Marketing Officer and Brian Lindley as Chief Development Officer in February. Together, the trio covers the brand-building, site-selection, and financial infrastructure functions that a franchise system needs when it is actively adding units and entering unfamiliar markets. Deviney noted that Travis's track record guiding high-growth restaurant brands was central to the decision. "His proven ability to guide high-growth restaurant brands will be instrumental as we continue expanding into new markets," Deviney said.
Expansion Context
Chicken Salad Chick made its Minnesota and Pennsylvania debuts this summer and has flagged West Virginia, New York, and Michigan as target states before the end of 2026 — a slate that would extend the brand's footprint well beyond its Southeastern base. For franchise operators and area developers evaluating the concept, the CFO appointment signals that the corporate team is investing in the back-office capacity needed to support franchisees through rapid unit growth. Travis, who officially assumed the role in August 2026, framed his mandate around unit economics and owner support: "My goal is to help strengthen our financial foundation and support our franchise owners as they expand."
Fast-casual franchise brands in the better-chicken segment have faced margin pressure from rising food and labor costs over the past two years, making disciplined financial leadership at the franchisor level increasingly consequential for franchisee profitability. For c-store operators watching the foodservice-at-cstore landscape, concepts like Chicken Salad Chick — built on a limited, high-repeat menu with strong catering and group-order volume — represent the kind of differentiated food and beverage competition that draws lunch traffic away from the forecourt.
Travis holds an undergraduate degree from Michigan State University and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
